Taking off from Birmingham Airport in June 2024

Leaving Birmingham Airport on a Ryanair Boeing 737 8200 for Santander Airport in Spain on Friday 21st June 2024. An early start, for the 6am BST flight. Managed to get the window seat going to Spain. But coming back had the aisle seat. Was a clear view of Birmingham City Centre taking off. Ended up landing in Spain to rain! 

Friday 21st June 2024

With no sleep, we got the taxi to Birmingham Airport after 2am. The Ryanair check-in was self check-in with the hold luggage. Then up to security! No queues before the lifts. So when we got upstairs, the queues around security took around 40 minutes to clear before we reached Duty Free and the Departure Lounge. Our Ryanair flight to Santander Airport left shortly after 6am BST. For the Basque Country holiday (coach tours and walking trips around San Sebastian, Burgos, Bilbao, also Pamplona, and into France to Bayonne, and the La Rhune train, on one day). Mixed weather rain some days, sunshine others.

 

There is new West Midlands artwork near the gates, but found it hard to get without people in the way, so just at the time made an in camera panoramic.

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After leaving the Departure Lounge for the Gate, it was sunrise (we left home in darkness in the taxi). Was TUI and KLM planes outside.

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Heading to the gate, saw a Ryanair plane outside the window.

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This was probably our flight to Santander.

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After showing the boarding pass and passport to Ryanair staff (was a long queue, even for Non Priority), you head out down some stairs and outside, then heading to the rear door of the plane.

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The morning sunrise from the plane window.

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Here we are taking off with Ryanair Boeing 737 8200 over the City of Birmingham shortly after 6am BST.

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In the distance is Birmingham City Centre.

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Zooming in was a bit hard to focus, but could see the BT Tower and other landmarks as we headed up to the clouds.

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The Library of Birmingham was the last thing I spotted before we left the Midlands.

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The last major thing to see in Birmingham was an HS2 site at Washwood Heath.

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Friday 28th June 2024

We left Bilbao in Spain in the coach before 6am CEST, to head back to Santander Airport. Raining again. The coach ride in the rain and darkness, we reach Santander Airport shortly after 7am CEST. Santander Airport is smaller and much quieter than Birmingham Airport, security didn't take as long to get through. The departures area only has one Duty Free shop and cafe. As I had to sit in the aisle seat, I couldn't get any window views from the Ryanair plane back to Birmingham. We landed just before 10:30am BST. Got this view of a Air France plane before heading to Arrivals, Passport Control and baggage claim.

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By the time we left the airport with our luggage, it was just before 11am BST. The tent canopy things for the departure security queues were empty as we got a taxi back home.

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Photography by Elliott Brown